Hello my friends,
Yesterday I finally got my right front strut replaced with a new one. Right after the fix I went to the dealer and got an alignment because it was only $20 more then NTB and more of a convenient location. After I replaced the strut at my mechanic's shop I drove it to Infiniti with no noticeable issues. Well after I received my car back from Infiniti I drove it for 20-30 miles and on the way back home I realized that everything is fine and straight but whenever I hit even a small bump. It resulted in a minor shake of the steering wheel and noticeably more on turns. Felt a little stiff/off in the front however that can be described. With it being sunday I had nothing to do so I took the car to NTB where I usually get alignments and they told me that I need to replace the other strut as well so that it will level out the suspension. That would cost me $350 with alignment.After NTB I thought back to when I was told by the service advisor at Infiniti that I need to replace the strut and realized that he never recommended I replace both instead just the one that is bad + alignment. To make an already long story short my two questions are:
1. Do you guys think that it could possibly be a new strut and need time
to be worked in?
2. What would you guys recommend?
3. and if I need to replace the other strut could I purchase a cheaper one? because a single strut will cost me about $250 (advantages/disadvantages?)
4. Since I got the alignment at infiniti will they warrenty their alignment's to a certain extent so that I don't have to whip out another $120?
Thanks guys,
Mike

 

NTB is full of it. Springs determine the level, not struts. Could it be you are just more sensitive to bumps because you are looking for them? On our G's, every little bump in the road is felt. Shouldn't be harsh but road feel is something that I feel throught the wheel, pedals and shifter quite readily. Even the seat transmits road feel.

I don't know how many miles you have but assume you had only one replaced because it was blown. The new one will be stiffer than your old ones but unless you beat up your struts with a lot of miles or rough roads, it shouldn't be a problem.

 

he quoted me $1200 at first and I just laughed in my mind. I have 68k at the moment with the 18 inch sport wheels and my tires are really bad in the rear which will be replaced this coming week. After I had the car repaired and aligned I became alot more cautious overall just to see how it performed in a general sense. Not only on this g sedan that I have now but the maxima that I had before this had 18's on it too, regardless of the rim size the passenger seat did shake alot. I'm going to keep an eye out on the front tires to see if they wear out sooner on one side or the other. I was driving on the highway in very light traffic conditions and gave the car a test to the higher highway speeds and it was perfectly ok. I guess I'm not used to the steering wheel shaking a bit more then usual. It's hard to switch from lexus to Infiniti when your concern becomes the ride . I'm going to give it a little time before I whip out anymore cash. I appreciate your help/thoughts on this situation.
THANK YOU!
I love this forum and the people on it.

 

I'm definitely following up on this issue... the shakes have become worse and on every single bump or different elevation bump...the steering wheel shakes noticeably. I called my advisor at infiniti to see what he says (the only advisor I trust) still have not got a response back yet. Could this be a tie rod issue and not strut?

 

68k is a lot of miles. If it were me, I'd replace all 4 struts/shocks at the same time if I were having a problem at one corner. Just curious, what was the problem you were having that they recommended just replacing that particular strut--was it blown with grease all over? You definitely should not have major steering wheel shake over routine bumps. Is the ride harsh or abnormal irrespective of the steering wheel shake? Any anomaly in the suspension is probably going to be felt in the steering wheel. I've even had old/worn tires be accountable for very poor ride too though.

 

The reason for the replacement was because it was leaking noticeably (blown)... The ride is pretty normal and drives straight after the alignment. However on a big or small imperfection in the road causes the steering wheel to shake (very similar to braking at high speeds with warped rotors). I'm positive that the rear tires have nothing to do with it because when you hit small bumps you can hear a very small noise from the front as if something is loose... and the noise comes from the front passenger side that got replaced. I spoke to infiniti and they said that it is not due to the alignment instead their may be a seperate issue from the strut that needs to be addressed or the mechanic did not install the strut correctly. Tomorrow morning I'm going to take it to the shop to have the guy check it out again, but in the meantime I assume that it could be the strut mount. I could be wrong though. I'm sure if the dealer I took it to many times would have noticed any other issue other then the strut for ex: a control arm etc... I did take a look at it and noticed a little bit of residue from the leak, now I don't know if this is from the new one or the old.
What a confusing situation!
I don't know

 

I'm sure there is something that needs to be replaced when changing a strut that has many miles on it. Even when I was on the old strut the ride would shake but only at speeds of 60-80 mph.

 

Something useful to look at and make guesses

 

you need to replace the other shock. you have a new shock that is dampening well while the other is probably worn out. so when you hit a bump you're feeling the difference between the two. just order a new Tokico HP shock, it's actually the same think as the OEM shock but only costs $70

 

but while you're at it replace all the remaining shocks too, you're gonna have to do it pretty soon anyways, so you'll save on paying for another alignment

 

A strut replacement is pretty basic. There is not really much you can mess up that would cause the steering wheel to shake badly. I don't think you would have to change the strut mounts or the spring perches at that age. Still, you shouldn't be hearing noises in that corner. Maybe they forgot to attach the sway bar end-link on that side or something.

 

yeah I just did the 60k and to add the shock replacements to this equation just makes me think of all the money I'm spending on the g... I drove it alot slower tonight on the way back and it felt like on certain bumps something was trying to pound through the front right side. I will update this tomorrow morning with a good/bad result I hope it works out. As for a re-alignment after any change Infiniti does not have any warranties but they did say that if it is a short amount of time they will work with me. Thanks for your responses fellas.

 

Update... My mechanic held on to the car for a couple hours today and performed a test drive and checked out everything and we're at : (the coils) can be a cause of the vibration... the car when pushed down it would softly move up and down like a cadillac. However the other side that is on the old strut is stiff. Regardless I scheduled to take it in for a a diagnostic test at Infiniti on thursday.
If it is the springs then we may possibly be looking at new coil over drop.

 

The only thing that changed prior to the new steering wheel shaking issue is the front right strut. If you didn't have a problem before changing the strut (only on one side) then it only makes sense that your dampening is now uneven and the cause of the problem you are having now. Seems like the old strut is toast as well.
What year is your G? Hard to imagine the coil springs could be shot.

 

it is a 2007... It's got to the point where a rough surfaced road will shake the steering wheel non-stop... What I'm really surprised about is I've spent $500+ on parts at Infiniti and when they did the alignment they did not realize this issue. Basically their were no issues with any of the struts until I was told that the RF is leaking and needs to be replaced. I watched the guy replace it and even drove the car after that and it was fine... now after the alignment something went wrong exactly as I was making a turn I felt a little click from the right side.

Thanks for the response!